Hit That Note↑
Chapter 1
“One, two, three, four!”
“Breanna? Are you ready? What’s taking you so long?”
“Yeah, I’m coming.” She hurried and packed the rest of her stuff in her bag. It was already bursting from clothes and other items which she claimed to be “necessary”.
“Urgh…What do they all want? If only I had my own house.” Breanna laughed. As if that’s ever going to happen. Living with her mom and younger brother was a drag at times but she couldn’t imagine living all by herself. Breanna stopped in front of a mirror outside her room. Wearing skinny jeans and a bright tee, she fixed her high brunette ponytail and ran down the corridor while dragging her pink luggage bag behind.
“Hurry up! I’ve been waiting for an hour already!”
“I’m coming, Tristen, can you just wait for one second?”
“If we’re late for the bus I swear I’m going to…”
Breanna ran out the door and slammed it shut behind her. Standing on the front porch of her house, she gave Tristen a wide grin.
“Wow!” Tristen opened her mouth and stared at Breanna’s bag.
“What?” Breanna glanced at the bag she had wasted so much time on preparing that week. “Is…something wrong? You look like someone just stole your lip-gloss” Breanna laughed and looked at her best friend. She knew how much it annoyed Tristen when her obsession with make-up was mentioned.
“Not funny! I’ve been waiting for you this whole time and you don’t even bother to hurry up,” Tristen looked at Breanna and they both burst out laughing. The two fifteen-year-old girls hugged each other and glanced back at the house.
“So what did you make that face for?” asked Breanna.
“Look at your bag! It looks like you’re going traveling around the world instead of going to a band academy for just a month.”
“Come on, you said it yourself. It’s a band academy. We're preparing for a competition. Who knows what’s going to happen? I bet two weeks won’t go by and you’ll be asking me for something to wear.” Breanna winked and began searching for her bus ticket.
“Fine, but have fun trying to get that,” Tristen pointed at Breanna’s bag, “Into those small compartments over our heads on the bus.”
The two teenagers arrived at the closest bus station and watched a blue, traveling bus approach.
“Here we go. There’s no turning back now.”
“I wouldn’t miss this opportunity for anything.” Breanna hesitated for a second and quickly walked through the open doors of the bus.
Chapter 2
The bus driver was in his late-thirties. Wow, he looks young, thought Breanna and then glanced at ten other teenagers sitting in pairs on her left. Tristen followed behind and nudged her. Slowly the heads of the other young adults turned to look at the arrivals of the last stop before their long road trip.
“Hey,” Breanna smiled and walked between the rows to find two empty seats. As she passed, the teenagers nodded, waved, or just stared. Finally she found two empty seats three rows from the back and sat down. Tristen joined her and they gave each other a knowing look saying “what did we get ourselves into”. It took them months of begging their parents to join the competition at the Band Academy. Now, teenagers from all over the city will be competing for a free tuition at the Academy and an opportunity to go on a world tour and perform with their band members.
“So these are some of the contestants,” nervously whispered Tristen. Their bags stood next to their seats.
“Excuse me,” Breanna heard an unfamiliar voice and felt someone tap her from behind. Both girls turned to see two guys around their age smiling at them.
“Hey, I’m Nick. And that’s my friend here. We’re 16 and come from Mississauga.”
Nick was tall, and his light brown hair outlined his bright blue eyes. He pointed at Ryan, who was listening to music. Breanna gave Tristen a quick glance and turned her attention back to the two guys while Ryan slowly lowered his headphones and gave them a huge grin.
“Hey, I’m Ryan. Wattup?” Ryan was slightly shorter than Nick and had a darker skin tone. His spiked up hair and loose clothing gave Breanna a feeling he was more easy-going.
“Nothing much…I’m Breanna. This is my best friend Tristen. We’re both fifteen.” Breanna suddenly felt awkward and looked at Tristen.
“So you guys like playing in bands, huh?” questioned Ryan to break the silence.
“Ryan, what a stupid question. We’re all here, aren’t we?” said Nick, “Let’s put up their bags in the top section.” They stood up and soon were seated back, the bags in place. Then a high-pitched, feminine voice spoke on their right, “Can you guys be quiet? I’m trying to sleep here.” Everyone turned to see a dark-haired girl dressed completely in pink sitting with her legs crossed. She had a fashion magazine on her lap and tossed it aside as she gave Nick a glare.
“And you are?” asked Nick in a mocking voice.
“Reena,” she spoke again in her high voice and stared at her nails, “I’m trying to sleep and you’re making too much noise.”
“I think if you shut your mouth you’ll have no problem falling asleep,” laughed a slightly dark-skinned boy behind her. He ran a hand through his dark hair and turned to Breanna. “My name’s Russen but you can call me Russ. And don’t mind her. Her music skills aren’t even a quarter of her ego.” Reena turned back and waved her hand.
“For your information I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t good at piano and making songs so the only person that should shut up here is you.”
“Actually,” spoke Nick, “I agree with Russ. And watch where you wave your hand. It might ruin you manicure.” Breanna laughed wondering how Reena could play piano with such long nails and received a cold look from her.
“We’ll see who’s good and who’s not. While you couples will be busy chatting all day long, I’ll be preparing to blow the judges away at the final performance.” Reena swiftly turned her head and stared out the window. The teenagers glanced at each other.
Ryan pretended to throw his MP3 player at her before turning back to look at Russ.
“Hey, have I seen you somewhere?”
“Yeah, we were in the same audition group. I’ve seen you perform. Loved the guitar,” Russ reached out and they shook hands.
“I bet you did better than me” Ryan turned to Tristen, “How about you? What’s your instrument?”
“Oh, I’ve been singing since I was young” They began to talk about their past and childhood experiences. Breanna, feeling sleepy, looked out the window. Time has passed by quickly and it was already getting dark. She watched the striking sunset. Colours of red, yellow, and orange seemed to be moving in the sky creating an illusion of a rock concert. She smiled.
“Beautiful, eh?” Breanna quickly turned to see Nick staring out the window too.
“Yeah, I love it,” she said and before he could answer, the bus drivers voice spoke through a huge speaker at the front of the bus.
“We are now turning off the main lights and will arrive at our destination at 2 p.m. tomorrow. Please remain quiet for a peaceful journey. Good night.”
“Good night,” said Nick and pulled his hood over his head while Ryan placed his MP3 in his pocket and closed his eyes.
“Good night.”
Chapter 3
“We will arrive at our destination in one hour and thirty minutes. Pack your bags and other belongings. Please don’t leave garbage behind. Thank you.”
Breanna opened her eyes and yawned.
“What? It’s twelve thirty already?”
“Yeah,” answered Tristen, “We tried nudging you but you wouldn’t wake up.”
“Good morning!” Breanna looked up to see Nick’s head peeking over her bus seat.
“Hello.”
“Yo Nick, get your stuff ready. We’re almost there.” Ryan opened the compartment over his head and got their bags out.
“Are we there yet? I need to use the bathroom,” Reena stood up and stretched. She looked at Ryan, “Oh my god, I’ve seen you somewhere!”
“Uh, really?” Ryan looked confused and kept packing his bag.
“Yeah, you were that guy! Um…oh yeah! You were in last month’s Teen magazine. Oh My God!” she waved her hand at his T-Shirt that said “Making the Band”.
“Sorry girl, he doesn’t give autographs,” Nick pushed his way past them and went to speak with the bus driver.
“Well,” Reena looked disappointed, “Fine.” She turned and pretended to be looking for something.
“Uh, that was awkward…” said Tristen.
“Oh, her? It’s alright. I guess I got used to it by now. Ever since I won the ‘Making the Band’ competition, girls like her,” he nodded in Reena’s direction, “Just don’t give me a break.”
Nick returned and said, “Ten more minutes and we get to our dorms. Can you believe it? Living all by ourselves for a month. Going out anywhere, anytime. This is gonna be incredible.”
With Nick’s help, Tristen and Breanna dragged all of their bags to the front of the bus and watched it approach a giant, brick, three-story building. Soon it stopped and the bus driver opened the doors. He waved them good-bye as they made their way outside. As soon as they were all out, the doors shut behind them and the bus took off. In the distance, they could see houses ranging in different sizes and what appeared to be a huge mall.
“Oh, hey, let’s go to the mall!” smiled Reena and looked hopefully at two other girls. Both of them waved their heads as a sign of a “no” and resumed their conversation. After a minute, one of the girls turned and spoke, “Uh, should we go in?”
Soon her question was answered. A young woman around twenty years old came out of the front entrance and waved to the group. They followed her in and gasped at the beautiful interior. What looked like an old building from the outside resembled a palace within. Two enormous stairs from the sides of the giant hallway spiralled their way up to the second floor. The marble floor showed a reflection of the chandelier on the high ceiling.
“This is…” Reena opened her mouth and stared at the stairs.
“Hi everyone! My name is Larisa Renard but you can call me Risa. I’m so excited to see all of you! So these are our best teen Ontario musicians.” Risa looked closely at each teenager standing in a tight group at the front of the entrance. “Welcome to the Residence of the Ontario Band Academy. For the next month, you’ll be staying here and learning our routine for the upcoming competition. Now, I hate to say this, but there are some rules.” Nick and Ryan groaned as Risa continued. “Rule number one. You have to attend the band rehearsals no matter what the circumstances are. This competition is real. For many of you who haven’t yet realized, I will be your instructor. Now please follow me upstairs as I escort you to your rooms and explain the rest of the rules you’ll be following for the next month. You can leave your bags, they’ll be carried up later today.”
Risa began making her way up the stairs to the second floor with the rest of the group closely behind. She quickly turned right and led them down a wide corridor. Each turn led to more beautifully decorated hallways.
“Wow, this is like a high-class hotel or something.” Russ turned from side to side. After one minute of following Risa, she finally stopped in front of a large door at the end of the long corridor.
“Here we are,” she said, “When you step inside, you’ll see two doors. One on the left and one on the right. One for boys, and the other, as you might’ve guessed, for girls. Now remember another thing. You are not alone here. This whole floor is filled with other students of the academy so make sure to stay as quiet as possible and show respect for other students. Food can be bought from the mall on weekends if you wish or you could order anything from our cafeteria downstairs anytime.”
Russ coughed and Risa turned towards him.
“Uh, about the dorms…”
“Yes?”
“Are we allowed to hang out anywhere in the building?”
“Sure. As long as it’s not during rehearsals or if you have bad intentions. I can answer any more questions the next time I see you which will be tomorrow at eleven. Dress casually and wake up at nine so you won’t miss our breakfast specials.” Risa said and turned to leave. Suddenly she stopped and glanced back, “Oh, and another thing. No guys in the girls room after nine.”
As soon as she was out of sight Russ’ voice spoke, “Man, did she have to add that last part.” They laughed and slowly Breanna opened the door to the girls’ room.
“I guess we’ll see you later.” She waved to the guys and entered along with Tristen and Reena. As soon as the girls stepped inside, they gasped. The room, just like the corridor that led to it, was decorated with pink, light blue and purple tones. Differently shaped pillows of the same colours were neatly lying on three large, circular beds. Breanna stepped into the bathroom and stood in front of a large bathtub and a full-size decorated mirror.
Tristen’s voice spoke from the room, “Breanna, this is amazing!”
Breanna came out of the bathroom and the two girls gave each other a long hug.
“I know, this will be so much fun!”
“Excuse me? Fun? We’re here to work and rehearse. Not to have fun.”
Tristen and Breanna almost forgot about their roommate. Reena sat cross-legged on her circular bed with her hand-bag neatly beside her.
“Uh, you’re excused even though we weren’t even talking to you,” Tristen looked slightly angry.
“Don’t even…” Reena was interrupted by a knock on the door. She stood up and after hesitating, opened it. Quickly, Russ, Ryan, and Nick stepped past her into the room.
“What’s up girls?” Russ jumped on one of their beds and looked around, “Hey, I like this room better than ours. It’s....cooler.”
“Of course it is. Now get out.”
The three guys turned and were surprised to see Reena.
“Hey, how’d you get here?” Ryan picked up her hand-bag and began to toss it around, “What do you keep in this thing?”
“That’s none of your business, now get out. I won’t repeat myself.” She held open the door and fixed a loose strand of her dark hair.
“Yo, can you just relax? Let’s go guys. We’ll see you tomorrow.” Nick began to leave and laughed at Reena before stepping outside. Ryan followed and threw her hand-bag back on her bed. Russ reluctantly followed and soon Tristen and Breanna stood angrily staring at Reena.
“What’s your problem? Who cares if they’re here for a while? Why do you always make such a big deal out of small things?”
“This competition is a big deal for me. If it’s not for you, I don’t care, but you won’t mess up my opportunities to become a celebrity.” Before getting an answer, she stepped into the bathroom and slammed the door shut.
“Celebrity?” Tristen looked at Breanna and they began to laugh, “This is going to be interesting.”
